BIG IDEAS

Big Idea 1

Big Idea 1 Artists manipulate materials and ideas to create an aesthetic object, act, or event. Essential Question: What is art and how is it made?

Students differentiate the components of form, function, Learning Objective 1.1 Students differentiate the components of form, function, content, and/or context of a work of art. Raspberry colored sheet in my workshop materials.

Learning Objective 1.1 Reordering this list of ideas for clearer student understanding: 1st content 2nd form 3rd context 4th function

Learning Objective 1.1 Content Form Context Function

Content College Board Definition Content of a work of art consists of interacting, communicative elements of design, representation, and presentation within a work of art. Content includes subject matter: visible imagery that may be formal depictions (e.g., minimalist or nonobjective works), representative depictions (e.g., portraiture and landscape), and/or symbolic depictions (e.g., emblems and logos). Content may be narrative, symbolic, spiritual, historical, mythological, supernatural, and/or propagandistic (e.g., satirical and/or protest oriented). 

Content Interactive communicative elements of the work Subject matter – visual imagery Narrative elements Symbolic elements- iconography Content can be Objective / Non-objective

Content Content (what the work of art is about – specifically it’s subject matter) is often related to the function of the work or the intended purpose of the work of art within the culture. Works of architecture do not have “content” but architects choose architectural styles and building motifs to support the buildings function

Learning Objective 1.1 Content Form Context Function

Form – College Board Definition Form describes component materials and how they are employed to create physical and visual elements that coalesce into a work of art. From is investigated by applying design elements and principles to analyze the work’s fundamental visual components and their relationship to the work in its entirety.

Form / Formal Analysis Material used Techniques employed in the work’s creation Elements of art Principles of design The above visual elements “coalesce” in a work of art = Style

Form - ways of analyzing sculpture Materials / techniques Stance / presentation Proportion (figure) Anatomical detail / correctness Movement / gesture Facial expression Organic / geometric form Negative / positive space

Learning Objective 1.1 Content Form Context Function

Context College Board Definition Characteristics of the artist and audience – including aesthetic, intellectual, religious, political, social, and economic characteristics – are context. Patronage, ownership of a work of art, and other power relationships are also aspects of context. Contextual information includes audience response to a work of art. Contextual information may be provided through records, reports, religious chronicles, personal reflections, manifestos, academic publications, mass media, sociological data, cultural studies, geographic data, artifacts, narrative and/or performance (e.g., oral, written, poetry, music, dance, dramatic productions), documentation, archaeology, and research.

Four ways to think about “context”

1: Physical location of the work of art in its original setting Contextual Analysis 1: Physical location of the work of art in its original setting Where was the work of art originally situated?

2: Artist and patron of the work of art Who was the patron or Contextual Analysis 2: Artist and patron of the work of art Who was the patron or the work? Who was the artist?

3: Historical events which influence the work of art Contextual Analysis 3: Historical events which influence the work of art What is the subject matter of the work of art and is it historical relevant ?

4: Concepts and ideas which surround the work – ideas and beliefs Contextual Analysis 4: Concepts and ideas which surround the work – ideas and beliefs What religious, social or philosophical ideas within the culture influence the content or presentation of the work of art?

Context for Sumerian Art Teaching Context Context for Sumerian Art History: Constant political change in the region due to geography being open to constant invasion (Sumerian > Akkadian > Neo-Sumerian > Babylonian > Hittite > Assyrian > Neo-Babylonian > Persian) Politics: slow to construct unified communities because of different racial groups and invasion Religion: king/ ruler was not god-king (as in Egypt) but god’s delegate - patron deities for each city states Geology: building restricted by available materials, no stone quarries/ forests = sun-baked brick Art History: Interest in the Ancient Middle East heightened with the discoveries of treasure by Leonard Woolley in 1920 at the Royal Cemetery at Ur

Passage from the Epic of Gilgamesh Enkidu slept alone in this sickness and he poured out his heart to Gilgamesh. “Last night I dreamed again, my friend. The heavens moaned and the earth replied; I stood alone before an awful being; his face was somber like the black bird of the storm. He fell upon me with the talons of an eagle and he held me fast, pinioned with his claws, till I smothered; then he transformed me so that my arms became wings covered with feathers. He turned his stare towards me, and he led me away to the palace of Irkalla, the Queen of Darkness, to the house from which none who enters ever returns, down the road from which there is no coming back. >

Passage from the Epic of Gilgamesh (cont.) There is the house whose people sit in darkness; dust is their food and clay their meat. They are clothed like birds with wings for covering, they see no light, they sit in darkness. I entered the house of dust and I saw the kings of the earth, their crowns put away for ever; rulers and princes, all those who once wore kingly crowns, and ruled the world in the days of old…..O my brother, let some great prince, some other, come when I am dead, or let some god stand at our gate, let him obliterate my name and write his own instead”

Learning Objective 1.1 Content Form Context Function

Function College Board Definition Function includes the artist’s intended use(s) of the work, which may change according to the context of audience, time, location, and culture. Functions may be for utility, intercession, decoration, communication, and commemoration and may be spiritual, social, political, and/or personally expressive.

Function Context determines function, and plays a significant role in shaping the intended purpose of a work of art or architecture. Knowing the patron of the work is essential to knowing it’s function Knowing the original location is helpful If the work of art has no patron, then knowing about the artist’s life is critical in determining the artist’s intention.

Materials and techniques – Learning Objective 1.2 “Students explain how artistic decisions about art making shape a work of art.” Materials and techniques – how they affect form and function of a work of art or architecture The creative process

Learning Objective 1.3 “Students describe how context influences artistic decisions about creating a work of art.” CREATIVE PROCESS influence by contextual issues such as: Availability of materials Original location Scale/size Intended audience Geography and cultural traditions

Learning Objective 1.4 “Students analyze form, function, content, and/or context to infer or explain the possible intentions for creating a specific work of art.” MEANING Intentions of the artist or creator Relevant contextual issues especially the patron’s agenda Meaning of the work

Big Idea 2

Art making is shaped by tradition and change. Big Idea 2 Art making is shaped by tradition and change. Essential Question: Why and how does art change?

Learning Objective 2.1 Students describe features of tradition and/or change in a single work of art or in a group of related works.

Learning Objective 2.2 Students explain how and why specific traditions and/or changes are demonstrated in a single work or group of related works.

Learning Objective 2.3 Students analyze the influence of a single work of art or group of related works on other artistic production.

Learning Objective 3.1 “Students identify a work of art.” - two accurate identifiers (in addition to any given in the suggested list of works within the prompt) - students will not lose credit if additional identifiers provided are incorrect student should try to include all four of the following identifiers: - title or designation, - name of the artist or culture of origin, - date of creation, and - materials

Learning Objective 3.2 “Students analyze how formal qualities and/or content of a work of art elicit(s) a response.”

Learning Objective 3.3 “Students analyze how contextual variables lead to different interpretations of a work of art.” Meaning of the work of art Change over time Audience response

Learning Objective 3.4 “Students justify attribution of an unknown work of art.” Stylistic Analysis

Learning Objective 3.5 Students analyze relationships between works of art based on their similarities and differences. Comparative analysis